Tragedy Strikes Again In Rivers As Building Collapse Claims Life In Ogbogoro Community

A middle-aged man, identified as Udeme, is feared dead after a two-storey building under construction collapsed in the Egbelu Mgbaraja area of Ogbogoro Community in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Rivers State.

The tragic incident occurred on Monday afternoon, barely a week after a similar collapse of a three-storey building in Iriebe within the same local government area. Fortunately, no lives were lost in the previous incident.

An eyewitness who spoke with Vanguard, Mr. Jonathan Obey, revealed that the building caved in around 2 p.m. while contractors were working on the second floor. The collapse reportedly claimed the life of one worker, while another narrowly escaped with severe injuries.

Obey suggested that the tragedy might have been caused by deliberate construction infractions on the part of the property developer, raising concerns over potential negligence in building standards.

“It’s a building collapse; as we speak, one person is trapped right inside the rubble. When we first came, we tried to rescue the person, but we couldn’t. When we did our investigation, we found out that they used substandard materials to execute the project. We also found out that the foundation was 3 feet for a 2-storey building, which was wrong.

“We also found out that some of the rods used by the builders were of low quality; the decking itself was not chained; there was no centre beam; it was supposed to have a centre beam and a pillar in the middle, but it doesn’t have that. They did not use enough cement in casting the first decking,“ the eyewitness stated.

In the meantime, the Rivers State Government has sealed the premises of the collapsed building and declared the property developer, Vincent Nwoye, wanted over the tragic incident.

The Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Rt. Hon. Evans Bipi, during an on-the-spot inspection of the collapsed building, accused the developer of gross negligence and default of the extant building laws and regulations of Rivers State.

He cited the failure by the property developer to obtain a government-approved building plan and use of substandard materials as the cause of the building collapse and avoidable death.

He said, “We have repeatedly warned that if you are caught building without a government-approved building plan, you will certainly face the penalty.

“The government has sealed this property in question and declared the owner wanted because a life has been lost; we need to question him to know why he chose to use substandard materials to execute the project and why he decided to use a 12mm rod for a 2-storey building.

“It would interest the public to know that even the property does not have government approval; it is something the government will not take lightly; we will use this developer as a scapegoat for others to learn.”

Hon. Evans Bipi also described the incident as one-too-many while warning property developers to desist from cutting corners and endangering the lives of innocent contractors.

He said the Rivers State Government sympathizes with the bereaved family and the people of Ogbogoro Community over the unfortunate incident.

He noted, “Last week, we were at the site of a collapsed 3-storey building at Iriebe; though no life was lost in that incident, in this case a life was lost here in Ogbogoro. We truly sympathise with the family and the Ogbogoro Community where the victim resides. We are going to take him to the mortuary and notify the family; we are also going to disclose the mortuary so that the family members can identify and recover his remains for burial.

“This should serve as a warning to those who build without a building plan and to those who build with substandard materials.”

On his part, the Commissioner for Special Duties, Dr. Samuel Anya, expressed sadness over the loss of life in the building collapse due to the unethical and reckless practices of the property developer.

He accused the property developer of prioritizing profits over the safety of the construction workers and prospective tenants.